Another flash flood watch possible

A flash flood watch for the New Orleans area will expire at 7 p.m., as the heavy rainfall that plagued the area during the day diminishes, said Mike Shields, senior forecaster with the Slidell office of the National Weather Service.

"It looks like its going to be diminishing," Shields said. "The most extreme areas remaining are in southwest Louisiana, between Lake Charles and Lafayette."

Another upper-level disturbance in Texas could make its way eastward by late evening or overnight, which could prompt a reissuance of the flood watch.

Forecasters blamed an unstable air mass for thunderstorms that marched across the southern part of the state in a wide band during most of the day. In the New Orleans area, 1.37 inches of rain had fallen at the Louis Armstrong International Airport in Kenner by 4 p.m.. At Audubon Park, 1.19 inches was recorded, while .43 inch fell in Slidell.

The thunderstorms knocked out electricity to about 1,800 Mid-City households on Monday afternoon, Entergy spokesman Morgan Stewart said. By 5 p.m., fewer than 100 were still without power, he said.